Days 36 and 37

(Dan’s comments are italicized)

We know we’re away from the beaten track as we’ve not had a single person ask us to buy some memento or other; in fact, I’ve not seen any mementos to buy! It’s actually very pleasant not to be hassled.

I was last here in 1987, when the film Cry Freedom had just been released. The film, and book by Donald Woods, tell the story of Steve Biko in S. Africa. I highly recommend both! Because of apartheid, it couldn’t be filmed in S. Africa so it was shot mostly in Zimbabwe. I went to see it in a theater here in Bulawayo, on a street where some of the Soweto riot scenes had been shot. I was the only white person in the theater. At the end of the film, scores (hundreds?) of people’s names are recorded alongside how they died (e.g. death by falling down the stairs while in police custody). It was very emotional! I have to say, I was embarrassed to be white and a bit nervous of how people would react to me as we filed out of the theater. I needn’t have worried; a gentleman held the door open for me. As I walked through the doorway, I asked the gentleman how he could be so kind to me when I represented the group that had been so cruel to citizens of African nations in their own countries! He looked at me, shrugged, and said, simply, “But you didn’t do it!” Those words and the grace of the film-goers touched me beyond belief and helped sculpt my life.

But things have changed here in the last 38 years! Back then, Robert Mugabe was Prime Minister (1980-1987) and President (1987-2017). He was corrupt  and made some bad choices for Zimbabwe. However, apparently the current president, Emmerson Mnangagwa (who was  installed in 2017 after Robert Mugabe resigned in the aftermath of the 2017 coup d’état), is even worse! What used to be beautiful parks and buildings are now dilapidated.

For example, we’re staying in an old Victorian house and things have gone downhill in the three days since we’ve been here (Judith…!!) One night, we had water dripping from the ceiling in three places all night…and it wasn’t even raining!! Our ceiling now looks like this:

Turned out that an electrician working on the roof broke the water heater, which dumped its contents into the cracks in our ceiling. We then had to wait a couple days for the plumber to fix the hot water (cold showers anyone?). Hopefully it doesn’t rain, because I don’t think a roofer is on his way.

We walked around Century Park, a park that was beautiful and booming in the 1980s; although the trees are still beautiful, the splendor has disappeared.

We know all this because we spoke to a Zimbabwean man at the park; he remembers eating at the restaurants, watching the flamingos, and riding the train around the park.

Following the trip down memory lane, we found ourselves at the theater where a musical (part in Ndebele and part in English) called Ipi Ntombi (Chase the Girl) was playing. We decided to attend the matinee and boy, was that a great decision! I had done some research on theater productions in Bulawayo, and had written to the Bulawayo Theatre Club to see if they were doing anything during our visit. Turns out they were! While I was waiting in the lobby for the doors to open, a woman named Thanbo walked up and asked if I was the person that emailed her. I said I was, and she said I LOOKED like the person she was writing to?!? I introduced her to Rhia and we spoke a bit. Turns out Thando was the  production’s secretary in charge of social media. Not only that, she was also a major cast member! Ipi Ntombi was first performed in 1974 and had been nominated for Best Musical at the Laurence Olivier Awards in 1977. This rendition was updated from the original, and consisted of a local, amateur cast. Amateur or not, they were amazing, and each and every cast member put tremendous energy and enthusiasm into their performances.

The music, drumming, and dancing was amazing! I envied the high energy of these young performers. After watching the dancing for about ten seconds, I could deduce one thing for certain; none of these dancers were on that bus from Victoria Falls to Bulawayo with us! 😂 This was the perfect way to spend an afternoon and well worth the entrance fee of $10! This was certainly one of the highlights of the trip so far. I suggested that we see it again, but unfortunately, we were not going to be in town for the next show.

We’re trying to eat in different places to support local owners. Just like in S. Africa and Botswana, unemployment is such a problem here; around 85% of the people are unemployed! This is why there are so many entrepreneurs in these countries as it’s either sit at home and collect the $30 per month that the government gives you, or try to do something for yourself. I was in heaven today as I actually had BACON!

We had started out to find a restaurant called Earth Cafe but, as is the wont in Africa, it didn’t exist anymore so we ended up at a place called Carnivore. Whilst chatting with the owner, we were amused to find out that this restaurant used to be Earth Cafe but she had to change the name as people assumed she didn’t serve meat! With a name like Carnivore, I guess there’s no confusion any more! She has tried to change the name in Google Maps, but has had a difficult time. Google also listed a Backpackers Lodge right nextdoor that the owner said closed 10 years ago!

I end this post with a few photos of sculptures crafted with whatever happens to be lying around; the creativity of people never cease to fascinate and amaze me!